Renowned Japanese manga creator Kazumata Oguri, known for his comedic series Hanasaka Tenshi Tenten-kun, which was featured in Shueisha’s Weekly Shonen Jump and later adapted into an anime, recently shared his experiences of working for the magazine during the 1990s.
In a personal blog post published via note on July 17, Oguri reveals that as his series’ anime adaptation moved into its second season, his health began to decline significantly due to autonomic dysfunction and chronic lack of sleep. After experiencing symptoms such as eye twitching and temporary vision loss, he discussed taking a hiatus from the manga with his editor (referred to as “Mr. M”), suspecting that the stress and exhaustion were the root causes.
Oguri notes that his editor refused to grant him a break. Observing that more accomplished colleagues, including Eiichiro Oda of One Piece, were permitted hiatuses, Oguri resolved to boost his manga’s popularity in hopes of earning a similar break.
He eventually achieved this goal, securing the No. 2 spot in Jump’s reader polls after employing a clever cliffhanger out of desperation. Oguri’s manga ranked just behind One Piece, though he admitted this was a “one-time miracle” made possible by the fact that Yoshihiro Togashi’s Hunter x Hunter was on hiatus that particular week.
Following this peak, Oguri faced declining popularity and two unsuccessful story arcs, which deeply affected him emotionally. Despite these challenges, he was still not permitted to take a hiatus.
It is widely recognized that manga artists in Japan, especially those working on weekly publications, endure demanding working conditions and even instances of power harassment (as more authors have begun speaking out). However, Oguri’s account suggests that the experience at Jump varied depending on the editor assigned to the author. For instance, he mentions envying Masashi Kishimoto of Naruto, who was allowed to submit his storyboards incrementally, while Oguri was required to submit complete storyboards.
In the end, the author states that he encountered worsening health issues and difficulties at his studio, which he intends to detail in future blog posts on his note profile.